For college freshmen, the past two years of high school have been, in short, unusual. With virtual, asynchronous, or hybrid schedules, students had an incomplete end to their high school careers, with the last experience of “normal” school being back in March 2020. And now, as the spring 2022 semester approaches, students feel that their first semester has sped by. Midterms came too fast, and then all of a sudden students were booking trains and flights home for Thanksgiving break, with finals only a month away.
A common reasoning for this feeling among freshmen is the fact that this first semester of college is a big adjustment. First-year political science and philosophy major Julia Pace said, “While, of course, the first week of school feels like it was a while ago, I think that’s due to the amount that has changed since then. But overall I would say this semester didn’t feel like it lasted all that long … I think it sped by because there was so much adapting to a whole new lifestyle.” Pace said she felt that the main change from high school was that at Northeastern, her school schedule is much more flexible as opposed to the rigidness of a high school schedule. This was an adjustment, but a positive one, that made the semester pass faster.
First-year theater and political science major Emily Rosakranse echoed a similar sentiment, saying, “Maybe it’s just the nature of a fall semester of your first year at college, but it feels like I am always moving onto the next thing and looking ahead. It’s not just about classes and assignments, it’s also about social lives filled with exploring Boston, club meetings, and in my case, a lot of unexpected hours spent backstage.”
The adjustment to college has kept freshmen busy but in a positive way. Several students agreed that they are excited for the upcoming breaks but that they will miss life here in Boston. Students are also excited for the new semester and their new classes. For many freshmen, having an entirely new schedule after half of a school year is a new but welcomed change. First-year political science and international affairs student Matt Zuccaro said, “I think having semester-long classes takes some of the stress of having to remember a lot of information while being away … I also think it gives students a better opportunity to take classes they want to try.”
Rosakranse summed up what most freshmen have been feeling, saying, “This semester has really been framed by making new connections with new people but also about reconnecting with an almost normal world.”